Sidney h



(No Model.) n

- S. H. SHORT.

REGULATOR POR DYNAMG ELECTRIC MACHINES.

Patented Aug. 10, 18m

Inventor @XW WM dUNrrED STATES PATENT SIDNEY H. SHORT, OF DEVER, COLORADO, ASSIGNOR TO THE UXlTED STATES ELECTRIC COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

REGULATOR FOR DYNAMOELEOTRIC MACHiikll'S.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 347,204, dated August l0, 1335.

Serial No. 177.958. (No model.)

To @ZZ 107mm it may concern.'

Be it hnown that I, SinNux H. SHORT, of Denver, in the county of Arapahoe and State of Colorado, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Current-ltegulators for l)ynamo-Electric Machines; and l do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

My invention relates to a device for regulating the current developed and the energy consumed by a dynamo-electric machine.

The object of the invention is to connect with the terminals of the held-magnet wi rc of the dynamo an automatic shunting device which will regulate the amount of current flowing through the lield magnets, thereby regulating the electro-motive force of the dynamo, and also the current flowing through the external resistance.

Referring to the accompanying` drawings, Figure l. is a vertical section. Fig. 2 is a plan. Fig. 3 is a dynamo-electric machine, showing its connection with the regulator and external circuit.

In Fig. l, E is the hase of thcregnlator, with its standard D. Through the upper end of this standard passes a vertical shaft, c, its.

lower end extending down and having its bearings in the base l. This shaft can rotate easily in a horizontal plane. This shalt earries near its lower extremity a friction or gear wheel, il, which is firmly fastened to the shaft c, so that when the wheel d is made to rotate the shalt will also rotate on its axis. Just above this wheel is shown an ordinary G ramme eommutator having its segments o 7c mounted en an insulatingcylinder, s", which is also carried on lhc shalt. A single brush, j, is made to press against this commutator, and is supported on an insulating-block` s, which is firmly fastened to the standard b. Above the commutator, and carried on the same shaft c, is a drum or receptacle of convenient form, arranged to carry resistance-coils E, Rf, R`, R, E, and I. These coils are normally connected in series, as shown. One end of the series has a wire, l, connected to the comniutatator-segment c. This segment is in turn connected with the shaft c by means of a short wire, 5.

At various places in the series of resislaneecoils wires 2, il, 4, i'e., are carried out to the various commutator-scgmcnls l, l, fli, fli. X'c. New, if the wires w and n" be connccled, respectively, to the frame and the brush y', by means of the screws S and 5l, and lhese wires be connected with the terminals of the field-magnet wires of the dynamo, as shown at l() and 12 in Fig. 3, and if the shaft c he turned until the brush j is in contact with the commntator-segment o, Adie liehlmagnels will be short-circuited through the wires ir and u, the frame of the regulator, the wire the commutator-scfrment o, and the brushj. lf, however, the shaft be turned from this position, so that the brush 'y' is in eonlact with other commutator-segmenls, more and more ofthe resistance-coils may be thrown into the shunt, until, if it be turned through nearly one revolution, the brush y' is brought in contact with the non-conducting segment of the commutatorfas shown at si in Fig. 2, which throws the shunt entirely ont from the lieldmagnets of the dynamo, and allows the dvnamo to develop its maximum electro-motivo force.

It will be easily secu by one familiar with the art that in a currcntregulator such as described, it will be necessary to have the shaft c made to ,rotate in one direction when the external current is insufficient and in the opposite direction when too great. In l-he .lirst case it would be necessary to increase the resistance in the lield-n'iagnet shunt, and in the latter case to decrease it. In order to accomplish this, the main current from the dynamo is caused to pass through an electro-magnet, fi, Fig. 2. The terminals ol" the wire of this electro-magnet are shown at a" and fr", and in Fig. l the external circuit is shown completed through the electric recept-ive deviceat L, which may be electric lamps or motors. This electromagnet is made to aetuate an armature,

7i., in opposition to a spring, X, the tension of which maybe adjusted by the screw I), which is supported in a post, H. Then the current through this magnet is sufficiently strong, it will overcome the tension of the spring X and move the armature h to a contact with its poles. Vhen, however, the current diminishes be- IOC low a certain quantity,the springX will overcome the force ofthe magnet and will move to its former position. The armature h is carried on one end o'fa lever, g, which is pivoted on the aXis p. The other end ofthe lever is broadened ont to carry two friction or gear wheels, fand e, which are supported by and rotate freely about the axes p and p. These two wheels are always geared together, 1o so that when one rotates in one direction the other moves in the opposite direction. One of these wheels is caused to rotate constantly by having attached to its shaft a belt-wheel, 9c, which is connected by means of a belt, z, 1 5 with another belt wheel or pulley, y, whichis carried on a shaft, c, which may be the dynamo-shaft or any convenient source of power. It is now easy to see that if the gearlwheel f, Fig. 2, is made to rotate constantly in the di- 2o rection of the arrow, and its motion is communicated through the second gear-wheel e to the large gear-wheel d the commutator and resistancecoils will be moved around in the direction of the large arrow, throwing more and more resistance into the shunt, until the electro-motive force of the dynamo shall be sufficient to send enough current through the external circuit and the electro-magnet 'i to move the armature 7L toward it, thus removing the wheele from the wheel d, when it will cease to rotate. Should the current increase in quantity through the electro-magnet t' and make a further movement of the armature h toward its poles, so that the wheelj' is incontact with the wheel d, then it will cause the armature and resistance-coils to 'move in the opposite direction, thereby increasing the resistance in the shunt and making a corresponding decrease in the electro-motive force 4o of the dynamo.

It will be understood that I do not confine myself to this particular construction of the regulator, but any other arrangement of the parts which will accomplish the same result 43 may be made use of. In some cases it is desirable to throw the shunt entirely out from the iieldmagnets of the generator and allow the current to decrease below its normal quantity and the regulator-shunt still remain out 5o of circuit. This is desirable when the generator is furnishing the current for an electric railway system or a system of electric motors, or when the reverse electro-motive force of the motors approaches that of the generators, in

which, condition this system is working with the greatest efficiency. A stop, S, has therefore been provided, as shown in Fig. 2, so that when the wheel e, under the influence ofthe tension of the spring X, has caused the large 6c wheel d to move toa position where the brush j rests on the non-conducting segment ot' the commutator s'l it can4 move no farther, for the Stop Sis against the pin 20 in the frame. There is also provided ahollow place in the periphery of the wheel, as shown at 2l, in order that when the stop S reaches the pin 20 the wheel e will no longer be against the face of the wheel d, it being prevented from dropping into the hollow place by the stop-screw at 22. As soon as the current shall have increased sufficiently to pull the armature h tothe poles of the electro-magnet t' the wheel f will be pressed against the periphery of the wheel d and the shunt again made to come into action. In this way the quantity of the current can never exceed a certain fixed limit determined by the tension oi' the spring X.

I claim as my inventionl. In combination with an electric generator, a movable series' of connected resistanceeoils, one end of said series connected directly to one of the terminals of the held-magnet wires of the generator, the other end and intermediate points of said series being ccnnected to the various eommutator-segments lcarried with the movable series of resistanceeoils, and through the brush to the other terminal of the field-magnet wire, and mechanism regulated by the current for moving said series of resistance-coils, all substantially as described. 2. In combination with an electric generator, a series of resistance-coils carried on a revolving shaft,a com mutator revolving with said shaft, and provided with an insulatingsegment and with short-circuiting segments, connection between one end of the series of resistance-coils and one terminal of the fieldmagnet wire of the generator through one section of the commutator, the other end of the resistance-eoils and intermediate points being connected to the short-circuiting segments, and a brush connected to the other end of the field magnet wire, whereby the variable resistance is located in a shunt around the field-magnet coils ci' the generator, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In a current-regulator operated and controlled by a current on the external circuit, a stop, S, the pin 20, the armature-lever. h, the wheels e `and f, and the wheel d, having the hollow 2l in its periphery, substantially as de scribed.

4. In combination, an electric generator, a series of connected resistance-coils carried in IOO IIO

a revolving receptacle, with one end of the series ot' coils connected directly to one terminal of the held-magnet and the generator, the other end and intermediate points being connected at the other terminal through a commutator carried with the revolving case, an electro-magnet in the external circuit having its armature connected with a lever carrying a pair of wheels driven constantly in opposite directions, and adapted, by means of the electromagnet, to be thrown into and out of connection with a wheel on the shaft carrying the resistance-coils, all substantially as described.

5. In combination, the electric generator D,

the series of resistanceeoils on the shaft C, a commutator on said shaft, the electric connections between the resistance-coils and the field-magnet coiis of the generator, an eiecbro- In testimony whereof I have signed my name magnet, Q, in the external circuit, with itsl'arto this specification in the presence of two submature on the lever g', the gear-wheels on he scribing witnesses.v lever, with mechanism for rotating them in SIDNEY H. SHGRT. opposite directions, and bhe gear-wheel on the Vit-nesses:

shafs of the resistance-coil, substantially as de- WM. N. BYERS,

scribed. H. A. GRAY. 

